A Democratic political consultant was indicted on Wednesday after he admitted he was behind a bizarre series of robocalls that urged New Hampshire voters not to cast ballots in the state’s GOP primary in January.
The calls told voters to instead save their energy for November so they could re-elect Democrats -- and the voice on the other end of the line sounded enough like President Joe Biden that a Democratic consultant was charged with impersonating a political candidate.
Steve Kramer also was charged with 13 felony counts of voter suppression in indictments that were handed down from the state’s attorney general’s office, WMUR-TV in Manchester, New Hampshire, reported.
He was also hit with a proposed $6 million fine from the Federal Communications Commission for "apparent spoofing violations."
The charges involve 13 residents in four counties who received the calls.
According to NBC News, at the time of the calls, Kramer had a six-figure contract with Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who focused on New Hampshire in his longshot primary campaign against Biden. Both men said Phillips had no knowledge of the robocall campaign.
One woman who said she received one of the robocalls told WMUR she was confused by what she heard.
"It sounded like Joe Biden, and I was like, 'That's weird,' and then as I listened more, I'm like, 'It doesn't really sound like Joe Biden,'" New Hampshire voter Krista Zurek said.
Kramer did not deny being behind the calls while speaking to the outlet but said he only organized them to alert people of the dangers of artificial intelligence.
NEWS: Steve Kramer, the political consultant then-working for Dean Phillips who admitted to me that he commissioned the Biden deepfake robocall, has been indicted. https://t.co/cQxI061hq8
— Alex Seitz-Wald (@aseitzwald) May 22, 2024
He said that if law enforcement officers wished to come after him for the robocalls they should "bring it.”
Republican New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella brought it Wednesday when he charged Kramer and said his state would not tolerate attempts at what he classified as election interference.
“New Hampshire remains committed to ensuring that our elections remain free from unlawful interference and our investigation into this matter remains ongoing,” Formella said in a statement, according to The Hill.
The calls featured a voice that mimicked Biden’s urging support for Democrats this fall.
“We know the value of voting Democratic when our votes count,” the Biden-like voice told Granite State voters. “It’s important that you save your vote for the November election. We’ll need your help in electing Democrats up and down the ticket.
“Voting this Tuesday only enables the Republicans in their quest to elect Donald Trump again. Your vote makes a difference in November, not this Tuesday.”
NBC reports that NH voters are getting robocalls with a deepfake of Biden’s voice telling them to not vote tomorrow.
“it’s important that you save your vote for the November election.”https://t.co/LAOKRtDanK pic.twitter.com/wzm0PcaN6H
— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) January 22, 2024
The state attorney general’s office said at the time it was taking the matter seriously.
"These messages appear to be an unlawful attempt to disrupt the New Hampshire Presidential Primary Election and to suppress New Hampshire voters,” Formella’s office said in January in a statement to NBC News.
His office added, “New Hampshire voters should disregard the content of this message entirely.”
According to The Hill, the calls were the first known instance of deep-fake technology intertwining with American politics.
A month after the calls took place, Kramer told NBC News that he wanted to testify publicly about why he placed the calls.
“I’m not afraid to testify, I know why I did everything,” he said. “If a House oversight committee wants me to testify, I’m going to demand they put it on TV because I know more than them.”
Kramer also compared himself to American Revolutionary War hero Paul Revere in the sense that he acted selflessly to alert people of impending danger.
“This is a way for me to make a difference, and I have,” told the network. “For $500, I got about $5 million worth of action, whether that be media attention or regulatory action.”
